Uni and NHS help fund road repairs

Major repairs to the Leeds Inner Ring Road should begin next spring after the University of Leeds and Department of Health agreed to contribute £4m.

The DfT has offered £16.3m towards the £25m major maintenance scheme for three structures on the ring road including the Woodhouse Tunnel beside the University and the city’s teaching hospital. Leeds City Council recently unearthed a 125-year lease between the council and the university, signed in 1969, whereby the university was allowed to occupy land above the tunnel for a nominal rent but with the liability for structural repairs to the tunnel. Over time the university has assigned part of the lease to the hospital trust.

The university and hospital will contribute £2.2m, split 50/50, towards the £18.3m costs of structural repairs and strengthening of the tunnel. They have also opted to buy out their liability for further repair works for 30 years (to 2042) at a cost of £1.85m.